Docudramas chronicle life in Somerville

By George P. Hassett

    For many, public meetings are long, tedious tests of patience. But for two city residents, Somerville’s public discussion of civic life is high human drama.
    Jesse Buckley and Sarah Fishman are local documentary filmmakers who wanted to capture the intense energy they saw in Somerville politics and politicians onto celluloid. Buckley is in the midst of “MaxPak” (the film’s working title), a feature length documentary about the development of the old MaxPak factory in Ward 5. Fishman directed “See Mike Run,” a documentary about Michael E. Capuano, D-Somerville, and his 1999 run for United States Congress.
    “I went to a meeting to discuss the development of the old MaxPak site. There was an outcry of criticism against the developers from the people who attended the meeting. I became inspired by my neighbors. They were of different backgrounds, but they all came together as a community to seriously discuss and debate what was happening in their neighborhood. It was a real human drama,” he said.

   Buckley spoke with neighborhood activist Joseph P. Lynch about documenting that human drama on film. The two decided to collaborate on a film and Buckley said he has filmed many of the neighborhood meetings in preparation.
    Buckley said the film will tell the story of the MaxPak development and the overall gentrification of Somerville neighborhoods.
   “Somerville is one of the densest cities in the Northeast. For a long time it provided employment in industry and affordable housing for many middle class families. Luxury condos at the MaxPak site will alienate some residents, who will come to the meetings and voice their displeasure. Others will be pleased at the condos and accompanying gentrification because it will improve their real estate investment and send the entire city down the path the Davis Square neighborhood followed,” he said.
   Buckley said he is going to capture these dissenting voices at the public meetings, but the behind the scenes political maneuverings may prove more elusive for his camera.
   “The viewer may have to look close for the truth on the politics of the whole deal. There is a lot of truth to be seen in between the lines,” he said.
    Capturing the truth of Capuano and Somerville politics was the task for Fishman, who saw a cinematic opportunity when she looked at the former mayor and the way he did business. What shee saw became the basis for her documentary “See Mike Run.”
     “I saw the potential for a good story in Mike. He was a bull in a china shop, pushy, hands-on, very effective, and intense. But this same guy was brighter, more driven and more liberal than many people would guess,” she said.
      Fishman said she wanted to explore how Capuano influenced and was influenced by his own public image.
      “I was very interested in where does person stop and the candidate begin? How much is sincere and how much is an affected persona? And how much do they smoosh together?
      Fishman said she was not allowed to film campaign meetings where strategy was discussed, but was otherwise given free access to Capuano and his team of campaign workers. But even with that access, Fishman wanted to test the boundaries.
      “Sometimes I would just show up when I wasn’t scheduled to. I liked to catch him when he wasn’t poised,” she said.
       “See Mike Run” won a Judges Choice Award in the 1999 Hometown Video Festival, said Fishman.
         The main ingredient for “See Mike Run” and “MaxPak” is the same. The city’s dense neighborhoods and the people who live in them are a rich source of real-life, non-fiction drama. Somerville, it turns out, is the perfect setting for human drama, according to Fishman.
       “With so many people living on top of one another, people in Somerville are forced to discuss, or scream about, the issues that affect the city,” she said.
         Buckley said this passion is ripe for a documentary filmmaker.
        “People go to these public meetings and they are passionate about the way they feel. There is a real drama that unfolds here,” he said.